My philosophy is that I want to give the company/client a good value for their money but I also want to get paid what I'm worth. If I'm a 100K/yr engineer and t

My philosophy is that I want to give the company/client a good value for their money but I also want to get paid what I'm worth. If I'm a 100K/yr engineer and the company can't see paying that, the fit is probably sub-optimal and it's time to go someplace where I can create value. For example: An engineer working at a landscaping company cannot deliver enough value to justify a big salary. It's not the landscaping company's fault, it's just a bad fit. In my experience, pay increases happen when you start a new job or if you're lucky, when someone on your team leaves for more money. :-) Talk to your boss over lunch and let him know that it's obvious that you aren't able to deliver the value you'd like and perhaps it's time you got out of the way so they can get someone who is a better fit. Reassure him that you don't intend to leave them in the lurch.